Vraag het Leiden seeks academics to answer interesting questions sent in by the public
Would you like to share your expertise with a wide audience, and in a very convenient way? The Vraag het Leiden (Ask Leiden) video platform is looking for academics who can answer questions sent in by the general public, both young and old, by recording short videos.
As an academic, it’s important for you to share your knowledge with society. Based on this notion, the Vraag het Leiden (Ask Leiden) platform is an excellent springboard for researchers to conveniently fulfil their outreach to society, says coordinator Friso de Hartog. ‘Anyone who has a burning question can send it to Vraag het Leiden. We’re asked questions by children as young as four, but also by people aged 90-plus.’
Since its launch in 2022, the year when Leiden was the European City of Science, Vraag het Leiden has grown into a video platform with hundreds of videos and articles. Briefly described, the idea is that experts from Leiden knowledge institutions make short online videos to answer questions sent in by the general public. These questions can be about any topic at all: Why do stars explode? What does the world look like to a spider with eight eyes? Why do we have ‘beauty spots’ on our skin? ‘It’s a very accessible way for academics to share their knowledge,’ De Hartog explains. ‘After all, the videos are short and you’re answering specific questions.’
How does it work exactly? Watch the video (in Dutch)
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Watch the video on the original website orParticipating academics have access to the online ‘Q&A list’, which automatically sorts the questions into your area of expertise: from history to astronomy, and from philosophy to nature and climate. You can quickly select a suitable question and immediately schedule a video chat.
‘The videos last around two minutes, and we’ve usually finished recording them in less than ten minutes,’ says De Hartog. ‘All from the comfort of your own home, workplace or lab, whichever you prefer. It’s a very easy and accessible way to engage in knowledge transfer. We share the answer videos with the questioners and the city via the socials of the knowledge institutions and the Municipality of Leiden. Another good feature is that if you see a question you like and you know a colleague can answer it, you can tell them about it straight away.’
‘Ask a question’ training for young people
An even larger pool of experts would be very welcome, because the number of questions sent to the online Q&A is expected to increase dramatically later this year. Vraag het Leiden has been given an educational innovation grant by the municipality to introduce the platform in Leiden schools. ‘Young children ask really good questions, but then they go to secondary school and it’s often not cool any more. We want to break this pattern, partly because secondary education is an important time, when young people make decisions about their education and career.’
De Hartog has designed a training course that challenges young people to think about what they really want to know, and how to then create a good question. ‘The course also includes a section covering education on artificial intelligence, because why wouldn’t you just ask an AI chatbot about everything? We discuss the strengths and weaknesses of these tools, and explain why you also need real experts.’
De Hartog is appealing to all academics at Leiden University to scroll through the Q&A list. ‘In no time at all, you’ll have made an appointment and invited a few colleagues too. I hope this will start the ball rolling, so that more academics will join our Vraag het Leiden network.’
Enthusiastic? Sign up as an expert now!
Would you enjoy making short videos to answer the unusual and interesting questions sent in to academics? Then sign up as an expert with Vraag het Leiden (Ask Leiden) by sending an email to vraaghetleiden@gmail.com. PhD candidates are also very welcome to participate. You can naturally share your Vraag het Leiden videos via LinkedIn.
Since its launch in 2022, the Leiden City of Science year, the Vraag het Leiden video platform has been part of Leiden Kennisstad (Leiden City of Knowledge), the alliance of Leiden University, University of Applied Sciences Leiden, Naturalis Biodiversity Center, mboRijnland and the Municipality of Leiden.
Questions about science communication?
Would you like to know more about science communication or Ask Leiden? Please feel free to contact science communication advisor Saskia van Reenen.